Combined umbrella and cane



(MudeL) O. E. VAIL.

COMBINED UMBRELLA AND (JANE.

No. 369,374. Patented Sept. 6, 1887.

ATTORNEY.

UNITED STATES Parnnr tries.

CHARLES E. VAIL, OF KANSAS CITY, MISSOURT.

COMBINED UMBRELLA AND CANE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 369,374, datedSeptember 6, 1887.

Application filed February 8, 1857. Serial No. 226,036. (ModeL) To all1071 0111, it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES E. VAIL, of Kansas City, Jackson county,Missouri, have invented certain new andnseful Improvements in CombinedUmbrella and Cane, of which the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming apart hereof.

The object of my invention is to provide a new and improved combinationinstrument which can be used as a cane or as an umbrella, and which willbe devoid of the usual braces for holding the frame in shapewhen'spread.

Theinvcntion consists in the special construction of the center-piecewhich holds the frame of the umbrella and its manner of working andattachment to the canenaniel y, the sinking of the ends of the ribs intogrooves formed longitudinally in the body of the centcr-piece.

The invention consists, further, in the peculiar shape of the ribs,which have the greatest strength at the end attached to the centerpiece, which are made tapering toward their outer ends, whereby the saidouter ends will have considerable more flexibility than the heavierinner ends, and which are formed in two sections hinged together for thepurpose of stretching the cover.

In the drawings which illustrate themanner of carrying out my invention,Figure 1 shows a cross-sectional view of the umbrellatop mounted. on thecane. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional elevation of the canecontaining the folded umbrella. Fig. 3 is a detail view of the combinedcenterpiece and cane-handle. Fig. 52 is a detail view of thehandle endof the cane. Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a rib having a portion ofthe covering attached thereto; and Fig. 6 is a detail view of a rib andaportion of the covering,and showing the man.-

ner of operating the hinged sections to stretch hand for use as anumbrella, the operator unthe cover.

The cane A may be made of wood, metal, vulcanized rubber, papier-mach orany other suitable material, is hollow, and is slightly tapered from oneend to the other.

The combined center-piece and handle B is provided with an outsidescrew-thread, 21, corresponding to the thread 22 of a bushing, B, whichis securely located in the handle end of the cane. Said center-piece isalso provided with an annular shoulder or flange, 3, which presses theribs to proper place when the frame is to be spread. The bushing B isalso provided with an annular flange, 4, which bears against the end ofthe cane.

For the purpose of permitting the frame to be inserted into the canewhen closed, and to allow the ribs to close down sufficiently far to dothis, I provide the body of the center-piece with a series oflongitudinal grooves, a, which permit the inner ends of the ribs to sinkbelow the screw-thread 21 and the center-piece to be screwed into thebushing after the frame has been placed within the cane, as shown. Thecenter-piece B is also provided with annular recess b, in which the ribsare pivoted in the usual manner. The ribs C are provided with aperforation, h, at their larger end, through which passes the pivotwhich hinges them to the center-piece, and with another perforation, (Z,at their outer end, by means of which the cover is secured in place. Ofcourse, however, the cover can be secured to the ribs in any othersuitable way. The ribs are also made to have the greatest strength atthe inner endthat is, tapering toward the outer end-whereby the outerend will have considerably more flexibility than the inner end. The ribsmay be either solid in cross-section or they may be formed hollow on theunder side, as shown at c.

The cover D may be secured to the ribs in the usual manner, as it is notto be removed therefrom in placing the frame within the cane.

The ribs are formed in two sections hinged together for the purposeofstretchin g the cover. About two inches of the length of the ribs ishinged to the main sections thereof by the wellknown form of hinge shownat 2, or in any other desired way, so that the hinged portions or outersections, G, can open upward.

The manner of operating the invention is as follows: hen takingtheinstrument into ones screws the center-piece or handle B from thebushing B, which will permit the frame to be withdrawn from the cane A.Then thelower end of the cane should be turned upward and the instrumentshaken slightly,when the frame will spread itself out; but of coursethere will be no tension on the cover yet. Then the operator shouldscrew the center-piece into the cane,or the cane onto thecenterpiece-either waywith the ribs in the position shown in Fig. 1,until said ribs are firmly held at about a right angle to the body ofthe cane. In doing this the thickest portion of the ribs is clampedbetween the shoulder 3 on the centerpiece and the flange 4 on bushing B.The center-piece being firmly screwed within the bushing, the operatornext straightens out the hinged sections G, as shown more clearly inFigs. 5 and 6,which will give the required tension to the coverD, andalso cause the ribs to assume a bowed position. In straightening out thehinged sections the inner ends of said sections (indicated by thenumeral 6) will come in contact with ashoulder on outer ends of the mainsections, as shown, thus preventing the hinged sections from swinginginward on the opposite side of the main sections.

The manner of placing the umbrella within the cane is quite simple, andis as follows: The hinged sections are to be first thrown back to removethe tension from the cover and from the'ribs. Then the cane should beunscrewed from the center-piece and the frame closed together, the ribsG closing down in the grooves a',and the cover rolled firmly around theribs and secured by the usual fastening-band-such as 20-and insertedwithin the cane, where it will be securely held by screwing down thecenter-piece again, as shown in Fig. 2.

To protect the lower end of the cane and prevent it from becomingblunted and disfigured in use, a metallic ferrule, 10, should be locatedthereon.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is- 1. Acane-umbrellaconstructed with a center-piece having a clamping-flange,and also having longitudinal grooves for the reception of the ribs whenthe umbrella is 'placed within the cane, substantially as shown anddescribed.

2. In a cane-umbrella, the center-piece B, provided with clamping flangeor shoulder 3, screw-thread 21, and longitudinal grooves a,substantially as and for the purpose shown and described.

3. In a cane-umbrella, the combinatiomwith cane A, carrying bushing 13,of the center piece B, provided with shoulders 3, screw; thread 21, andgrooves a, and ribs G, substan- .5 tially as described, and for thepurpose set

